An officer heard three gunshots near the intersection of 17th and Clark streets around 11 p.m. Friday.

Officials said the victim is 49-year-old Mark Greene.

The officer was driving on Clark Street when Greene flagged him down from the sidewalk, telling the officer he had just been shot.

The officer saw the victim had bullet holes on "either side of his neck from which a small amount of blood was seeping."

A police report said Greene stopped his car when a man asked him for a cigarette.

When Greene refused, the man shot a revolver several times.

Green tried to drive away but hit a parked car and a fence.

"We (were) just out here drinking, and the next thing I know, I heard three shots," said neighbor David Robinson.

"One of our police officers actually heard some gunshots being fired," said Des Moines police Sgt. Paul Parizek. "As he was checking the area, he ran into the victim."

"As it stands right now, the victim claims to have no prior relationship as to last night," said Parizek. "The circumstances are unusual enough. There's usually something else that goes on that leads up to these things. You know, the suspect is still at large. We're working on finding him."

Greene received critical care overnight at Mercy Medical Center.

The suspect is described as a black man in his 30s who drove away in a white four-door car.

Residents said the situation is concerning for the neighborhood.

"It's right by the schools, you know, and there are kids around here," said Robinson.

Hospital officials said he is in fair but stable condition.

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